


Research

by honestgrins



Series: Challenge Accepted [11]
Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-29
Updated: 2015-12-29
Packaged: 2018-05-10 07:00:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5575765
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honestgrins/pseuds/honestgrins
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Day 11 - Tropes: Caroline is working on her latest book, and her best friend just happens to have a sibling who's a rock star. Who better to ask about an inside look at the music industry?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Research

It was just supposed to be a research opportunity. Caroline had been struggling with her latest novel set in the music industry, and her friend Kol suggested shadowing an artist to observe their interactions. Caroline pouted at the idea, though it was a great one. Her books were gaining in popularity, but her publishing house didn't offer great connections like that.

Luckily for her, Kol had been holding out on her.

"Klaus Mikaelson is your brother," Caroline shrieked, popcorn falling out of her shocked mouth.

The visual would have been enough for Kol to swear off movie nights, but the piercing noise was too much. "Caroli-"

"How did I not know this?" Caroline shook her head in disbelief, her wide eyes seeing Kol in a whole new light. "You grew up with the front man of the Originals, today's answer to the Rolling Stones, and you never mentioned it?"

Kol just shrugged, waiting for the shock and surprise to pass. When it was replaced with a hurt expression, though, he quickly tried to placate his friend. "It's just habit not to talk about the family," he said, reaching for her hand. "My other siblings-"

"How many siblings do you have," Caroline asked, interrupting him again. She thought back to meeting Kol, a caterer she had met during one of her book launches. He had hit on her, she turned him down wittily, and they became fast friends through snark and a love of parties. Ever the open book herself, Caroline had shared all about her friends, her family, her rocky relationship that inspired her first successful novel. She didn't hold things back.

The fact that Kol hadn't even mentioned family to her hurt.

Sighing, Kol turned off the TV still playing the forgotten movie. "I have four brothers and a sister," he admitted. "Nik's the rock star, Bekah's the model, Elijah's the agent, Finn's the dullard, and Hen's the baby."

"So many," Caroline huffed. The only child thing wasn't a total loss, but she had always wondered what'd it be like to have a brother or a sister. "Wait, 'Nik' is the rock star. So, why does he go by Klaus? And Hen?"

"His full name's Niklaus," Kol sighed, giving into the interrogation he knew would come. Her mother was a sheriff, after all. "And Hen is short for Henrik. Mum was a bit old-fashioned."

They spent the rest of their night picking apart Kol's relationships with his siblings, as well as putting together a game plan for Caroline's research.

* * *

Elijah Mikaelson's office was immaculate in its sternness. Kol had received instructions from his older brother that all Klaus Mikaelson inquiries must go through the agent himself. Caroline did her best not to fidget under his calculating stare, but the utter politeness did nothing to assuage her nerves.

"Kol says you would like to meet with Niklaus," he said, leaning back in his chair. "I'm not used to meeting friends of Kol's, which makes your request to visit Niklaus quite worrisome."

Though Kol had warned her of Elijah's dogged attention to protecting the family, Caroline was nowhere near prepared for the ferocity in the older man's gaze. "I've known Kol for about two years now, and we've been good friends for most of that time," Caroline explained as confidently as she could. "I've hit a roadblock in getting the right tone for my book, and Kol brought up shadowing Klaus. It was completely his idea, but I would really appreciate the opportunity."

Elijah silently stared at her some more, but the blatant scrutiny made her more than a little uncomfortable. She was ready to just give up on the idea and slug through the book as best she could, but the office door burst open before she could gather up her purse.

"'Lijah," a disheveled Klaus said, annoyed. He looked like he had just rolled out of bed. "Kol has been bombarding me with texts to meet you here all morning, when he knows I've been pulling late nights in the studio. What is so urgent?"

His look of annoyance turned to confusion as his eyes locked onto Caroline. "I'm sorry, I didn't know you were in a meeting," he said, straightening his posture almost automatically.

Sighing, Elijah stood. "Niklaus, this is Caroline Forbes," he introduced in a resigned voice. "She's a friend of Kol's apparently, a writer looking for some character research. Our brother decided to offer up your services."

"So you're Caroline," Klaus said with an odd smile. "Kol's mentioned you quite often."

"Seriously?"

"He has?"

Klaus chuckled at them both reacting at the same time. "Yes, I remember him being fascinated at the content he felt with your friendship."

"Oh," Caroline nodded. "Because he doesn't want to sleep with me anymore?"

"Precisely," Klaus agreed. "Though color me shocked, now that I'm seeing you."

The flirt took her by surprise, but the horror on Elijah's face almost comforted her. That, she had easily expected. Instead, she chose to focus on her proposal. "Elijah, I know you probably have all the reason in the world to be suspicious of me, but my notes would only be for my personal use. Nothing explicit would end up in the book, let alone recognizable in its vagaries," she said.

Turning to Klaus, who seemed lost in their conversation, Caroline smiled her brightest. "My publisher wants a book involving the music industry, and I'm looking for inspiration," she explained. "Kol suggested I tag along with you for a couple of weeks, if you were up for it."

Klaus raised a challenging eyebrow at her. "Oh, I'm up for it, love."

* * *

A couple of weeks turned into nearly a month of rehearsals, recording sessions, and promotional events. Klaus encouraged her to interview everyone in the band, the studios, and the crew.

The Originals were preparing to leave for a European tour in two weeks, and Caroline's editor loved the material she was suddenly inspired to develop.

She and Klaus had grown close, especially since she took her "shadow" position very seriously. Though their banter was similar to her dynamic with Kol, the sexual tension was undeniable. Ever the professional, however, Caroline refused to cross any lines.

"Caroline," Klaus's voice broke in. She had been sitting in the corner of the band's rehearsal space, zoning out as she considered the situation she had gotten herself into. "Sweetheart, I asked if you wanted to grab lunch before heading out to Kol's."

These invitations were common, and Caroline had been good so far at maintaining the boundaries. Group meals were okay; just the two of them screamed "date," even if they'd be heading to hang out with his brother, her friend, right after.

But with Klaus leaving soon, Caroline didn't want to maintain the boundaries anymore. "That'd be nice," she answered, smiling at the pleased surprise on his face.

They went for sushi, a restaurant choice that had always helped her distinguish between a friendly lunch and a lunch date. With Klaus, though, she couldn't be sure. She had never really felt nervous around him, so the uncomfortable silence prickled at her while they looked through the menu.

"Caroline, are you feeling all right," Klaus asked after they ordered, clearly worried by her flighty body language. "You seem…shaky."

"I like you," she burst out, not at all how she wanted to broach the topic. Hell, she hadn't wanted to broach the topic at all. But, since it was out, she figured she might as well power through. "We've been spending so much time together, and you've been so nice - when you're not being an ass. I just realized, I'm going to miss you when you go on tour."

Shock melted into a smirk on Klaus's face, genuine mirth in his eyes. "How much will you miss me, love?"

Narrowing her eyes at his teasing tone, Caroline reached across the table to lightly hit his shoulder. "You're enjoying this too much," she accused, her own smile widening.

"I'm enjoying this just enough," he promised, leaning in. "I like you, too, Caroline."

"You do," she asked before she could stop herself. A part of her had been convinced she made it all up in her head, despite Kol's obnoxious hints otherwise.

Klaus just nodded happily, reaching for her hand. "I had even been trying to come up with arguments as to why you should join us on tour," he admitted sheepishly. "I find myself not wanting to leave you behind."

Caroline froze as she processed Klaus's idea. "You want me to come with you? Across Europe?"

"I figured if I couldn't woo you in Paris, then we would be forever relegated to friendship," Klaus said with a shrug, still stroking her hand. "This, however, seems to be much more promising."

"Kol-"

"Has already suggested I 'sack up' and make the move," Klaus said quickly, slightly embarrassed.

Caroline couldn't help but to giggle. "I can't tell if Kol's a better wingman for you or for me," she said, still laughing.

"I'll just be grateful for the effort," Klaus answered, a bit more serious. "You can write from anywhere, with a tour background for your research to boot."

"You've really put thought into this," Caroline said, unable to hide the awe in her voice.

Klaus shrugged, though she could tell he was nervous. "The offer stands, and I hope you say yes," he said simply. "What do you say, love? Are you up for it?"

Caroline smiled, squeezing his hand in return. "You're on, Mikaelson," she replied.

* * *

Neither of them noticed the other diners subtly taking photos in their direction, though the tabloids ate them up the next day.  _Originals_   _Front_   _Man_   _Reads_   _Books_ , one said.  _Music,_   _Lyrics_   _and_   _Prose,_   _Oh_   _My_ , said another.

Caroline wouldn't admit it to Klaus until their wedding four years later, when she gifted him a loving scrapbook of their relationship; she bought every different headline she could to commemorate that lunch date. It was the conversation that really began their happily ever after.


End file.
